


7 Years

by choerryonce



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Pining, Romance, angstwithahappyending, comingofage, friendstolovers, slowburn, thegoldentrio
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-15
Updated: 2020-08-16
Packaged: 2021-03-06 05:41:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,545
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25918264
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/choerryonce/pseuds/choerryonce
Summary: A look at Ron and Hermione's thoughts about each other throughout their Hogwarts education (including DH) from their first meeting on the train to the epilogue. And an answer to the age-old question: who fell first?DISCONTINUED
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley
Kudos: 9





	1. Ron Weasley - Year 1

**Author's Note:**

> A / N: Welcome to my first romione fic. A lot of people hate on the Ron / Hermione pairing, but I think they are perfect for each other. Their relationship is literally the definition of “he’s an idiot, but he’s MY idiot.” Ron-bashers, don’t come for me. 
> 
> This fic will have 14 parts in pairs of 2. Each pair will chronicle a different year at Hogwarts (I know that DH isn’t really a year at Hogwarts, but bear with me), switching back between Ron and Hermione’s thoughts. Since the series is written from Harry’s perspective, we get to see a lot of his thoughts and feelings, particularly about Ginny and his romantic relationships. I was always mad that we never got to see these romantic thoughts from Ron / Hermione, Hermione especially. So, why not write it myself? These chapters will probably vary greatly in length. All events are canon compliant (taking events from both the books AND the movies - for example, Hermione will be very aware of Harry’s crush on Ginny like in the movies, but their first kiss will be the book version) and there will be no Harry / Hermione here. Enjoy!
> 
> PS: I feel like the first couple of pairs will be kinda OOC because there is not much tension or sign of attraction between them, so just bear with me because I’m not sure if they would cross each other’s minds this much in the first few books / movies.
> 
> Disclaimer: I don’t own anything except my IZ*ONE albums. Please don’t take them.
> 
> Disclaimer #2: If the dialogue in some scenes is not perfect, don’t sue. I’m too lazy to find the exact quotes. So be it.
> 
> (wow this A / N is real long)

When Ron Weasley first met Hermione Granger, he thought she was a fairly unpleasant person. He had never been one for following the rules perfectly, and she was exactly that type. He already had to deal with Percy bossing him around, showing off his Prefect’s badge all summer long, being the perfect teacher's pet. He didn’t need another Percy in his life. So when she entered his and Harry’s compartment on the Hogwarts Express, he wasn’t keen to make her more than an polite acquaintance.

As they entered the Great Hall in preparation to be sorted, he overheard her talking about the various spells she had learned and facts she had learned about Hogwarts from the wide array of books she had spent all summer reading. “I heard that Hogwarts was awarded the No. 1 Foreign Academy of Witchcraft and Wizardry from the French Wizengamot,” he heard her say, in a bossy, know-it-all tone. He scoffed inwardly and rolled his eyes as he passed her, shaking his head slightly. 

His feeling of annoyance increased tenfold when she was sorted into Gryffindor, the house he was bound to be in due to the fact that every Weasley prior to him had been in Gryffindor. If they were both in Gryffindor, he would have to deal with her on a daily basis. But as he approached the Sorting Hat he pushed these thoughts out of his mind - it wasn’t a good idea to be that annoyed with anyone in their year yet, right? She shouldn’t be occupying so much of his precious brainspace. “GRYFFINDOR!” the Sorting Hat yelled and as much as Ron was relieved and excited, the annoyance came back as he caught a glimpse of Hermione’s grin as she chatted with Percy. But oh well, he took his place and celebrated with the rest of their house. 

His fear of having to deal with Hermione daily was realized in their very first week of classes. She was always raising her hand expectantly and answering every question correctly. She was a know-it-all, alright. His fears were true.

A couple of months into their first year at Hogwarts the thing he had been dreading happened: they were paired up in a class. Worst of all, it was Charms, his worst subject. He was shit at spells of any kind, and she obviously wasn’t, so he prepared himself to feel inferior. And feel inferior he did. “It’s levi-O-sa, not levio-SA,” she said in the most condescending of tones.   
“You try it then, if you’re so clever,” he said. As soon as he uttered those words, he regretted it. Of course she was going to do it correctly - he wasn’t surprised in the least when her feather floated perfectly, rising farther and farther away from them, controlled by the lightest movement of her wand. He watched it fly away in a mixture of annoyance and jealousy, and then suffered through the rest of the class, itching to complain to Harry afterward.   
“She’s mental, that one,” he said to Harry as they walked across the courtyard, heading for the Gryffindor dormitories. “A bloody nightmare. No wonder she hasn’t got any friends.” He was so irritated by her that he felt no regret as these words left his mouth, but when she passed by them, looking teary, obviously having heard his remark, he felt a twinge of remorse hit him in the stomach.   
“I think she heard you,” Harry said.

The next day was Halloween, and having heard so many stories of the great, delicious, Halloween feast from his brothers, Ron (and his stomach) was terribly excited for that evening. He had been so distracted by the decorations put up around the castle and Snape’s lengthy Potions homework that he didn’t even notice that a certain someone had been missing from their classes all afternoon. He only realized when, at last sitting at the long House tables in the Great Hall, preparing for the feast, Harry had asked Seamus where Hermione was. When Seamus replied by saying she had been crying in the girls’ bathroom all afternoon, he couldn’t help but wonder if he had something to do with it. No, he definitely had something to do with it. He wasn’t that stupid.

When Harry reminded him of Hermione as they were all rushing to their dormitories after Quirrell came bursting in about the troll, he realized he had completely forgotten about her. Seamus had said she was on the second floor, so he and Harry sneakily got away from the crowd of scared Gryffindors to run up a flight of stairs. When he and Harry arrived at the bathroom, they were horrified to see that the troll was already there, and Hermione was too. Ron doesn’t remember much of what actually happened in that bathroom, except that Harry ended up upside down and almost hit in the head by the troll’s club. Soon he had yet again, forgotten Hermione was there.   
“Do something!” Harry yelled frantically at him.  
“What?” Ron asked desperately, not knowing what to do.  
“ANYTHING!” Harry pleaded again, and so, using the only spell he had ever seen someone in their year successfully accomplish, he raised his wand. Swish-and-flicking, he said, “Wingardium Leviosa!”, making sure to pronounce just the way that Hermione had in yesterday’s Charms class. Miraculously, it worked, and the troll’s club flew out of the beast’s hand. Shocked by the removal of his weapon, Harry was able to stick his wand up the troll’s nose and was dropped to the ground. Then the club fell promptly on top of the troll’s head, and the troll fell to the ground, knocked-out. A couple moments later, a very frazzled and covered-in-powder Hermione emerged from one of the stalls, her eyes wide and still slightly wet. Soon the teachers came rushing in, and the lecturing ensued, but Ron knew something had changed that night. “There are some things you can't share without ending up liking each other, and knocking out a twelve-foot mountain troll is one of them.”

As much as she was annoying, Hermione was also a complete and total lifesaver when it came to schoolwork. Several times over the next couple months Ron found himself extremely grateful for his bushy-haired friend, wondering what he would do without her. He would definitely fail his exams, that’s for sure. 

Over time, Ron became used to (and fairly happy about) Hermione’s continued presence in his and Harry’s friend group, and realized that when she wasn’t obsessing over schoolwork, she could be a fairly pleasant person and even crack a joke once or twice. It became the norm to study with her, eat with her, go to class with her, talk with her. And Ron found himself pleased about it.

Once he, Harry, and Hermione started their investigation into who Nicolas Flamel was and what Fluffy was guarding under the trapdoor, he found her reading comprehension skills and hours spent in the library to be very helpful. After all, it was her book that led them to discover the Sorcerer’s Stone and get them on the right track. 

Once they ventured through the trapdoor, her smarts actually saved his life, allowing him not to be strangled by Devil’s Snare. As soon as he dropped down on the ground, a tremendous wave of gratitude washed over him as he saw Hermione again. It took him a second to get it through his head that if she wasn’t there, and they weren’t friends, and if he had continued being a prick throughout the year, he would actually be dead right now. 

They got past the keys and finally to something Ron knew he was good at; the Wizard’s Chess set. He put Harry and Hermione in the least dangerous positions, and, proud to be doing something he was skilled at, took his place as a knight. He played the game - expertly, too - and at last it was the most crucial move. Realization dawned on him as he assessed the situation. He would have to sacrifice himself. It was worth it, though, and the Gryffindor in him told him that he needed to do this for the sake of his friends and the Wizarding World. And so, he was defeated and fell to the floor, only faintly hearing Hermione’s voice scream “NO!” as he collapsed in a pile of debris.

He would awaken later in the hospital wing, to Hermione placing some Chocolate Frogs at another bed at the far end of the wing. Once she moved away he could see that it was Harry laying in the bed, and the table in front of him was filled with candies and gifts. He sat up slowly, a headache pounding. Madam Pomfrey noticed at once that he was awake and quickly gave him a small cup to drink from with liquid that cured his headache in an instant. Hermione came rushing over to his bedside, and showered him with questions about how he was feeling, and then explained to him what had happened after he passed out and what Dumbledore had told her. He was so thankful for her presence, thankful that someone truly cared about him and was wondering if he was okay. 

As the year came to an end, Ron couldn’t help but be a little sad as he thought of a Harry and Hermione-less summer. He thought of how he at first couldn’t stand her, and then how he ended up nearly dying for her. All these thoughts and feelings were too much for an 11-year old boy, he decided, boarding the Hogwarts Express with Harry and Hermione, waving goodbye to Hagrid. Until next year.


	2. Hermione Granger - Year 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A / N: Hi everyone! Welcome to chapter 2 - Hermione’s version of the trio’s first year at Hogwarts. Wow, I cannot believe it has taken me this long to get this chapter up. I literally haven’t been doing anything since I’m on summer break and in quarantine, but I finally decided to get my shit together and finish this chapter (this was originally posted on Wattpad, about a month after the first chapter). 
> 
> Also please see my note (on the first Ron’s chapter) that the first few years will probably be a little OOC. For now, let’s see what everyone’s favorite know-it-all was up to during her first year at Hogwarts!
> 
> Disclaimer: I don’t own anything except my LOONA albums. Please don’t take them.
> 
> Enjoy!

When Hermione Granger first met Ron Weasley, she didn’t quite know what to make of him. Her first impressions were not the best, you could say. “You’ve got dirt on your nose, by the way. Just there.” Now, for all her life, Hermione Granger had been a stickler for the rules. She believed that they were there for a reason, especially in school. She always found herself a bit of an outcast in school, as she actually ENJOYED academics. Weird, right? But she found the hard work and effort to come naturally to her. She always wished to be the best in everything, but that meant the friends she had were few and far between. She never had a best friend as a kid, so when she got the letter accepting her into the Wizarding World (and Hogwarts), she resolved to try her best to make new friends. There’s gotta be a few people who enjoy school work here, right? 

Ron Weasley was not that type, it seemed. He and another boy (who was later revealed to be the legendary Harry Potter) were deep into candies and cakes when she came looking for Neville’s toad. And they hadn’t even bothered to put their robes on yet! They were 5 minutes away from Hogwarts, and here they were, not a care in the world. So, to say the least, Hermione was not impressed by these two and did not care to get to know them better.

When Hermione was sorted into Gryffindor, she was overcome with joy. She had never thought herself to be the brave type, more counting on her intelligence than courage, but now the Sorting Hat knew that she was brave and courageous. She couldn’t wait to get started! As she went to go sit down to a boy who looked similar to Ron (presumably a relative), and had a shiny prefect’s badge, she saw that it was Ron’s turn to be Sorted. There was no mistaking that flaming red hair. When he was sorted into Gryffindor as well and went to go sit next to a pair of twin boys who also looked similar to himself (wow, how many Weasleys are there?) she didn’t think much of it. After all, there were plenty of Gryffindors to get to know and befriend throughout the year, weren’t there?

Once classes started, Hermione felt like she was in a dream. She couldn’t believe that this intricate world of sorcery and magic had existed throughout her whole life, and it had been right under her nose. As someone who enjoyed learning, this was a perfect situation. By the time she had gotten to Hogwarts, she had learned most basic math, science, and history (she didn’t particularly care for history, but gave her best effort anyway). While, as usual, she was quite excited for the coming school year, she felt a hint of dread as she knew that a lot of what she would be learning would not be completely new to her, and of course, she always liked trying new things best. But when she arrived at Hogwarts, the world of new potions, curses, jinxes, and most of all, books, seemed endless. She had been so hard at work for the past weeks that her quest to find a friend had been mostly forgotten. She got along with people in classes, mostly. No one seemed to hate any particular subject with a passion, except for perhaps Potions, but who could blame them? Snape was clearly biased against Gryffindors and it made it difficult to enjoy the class. Sometimes people laughed at her nearly word-for-word definitions of terms or how her hand shot up so fast when any question was posed, but she was used to this and didn’t let it affect her. 

She met Lavender Brown, Parvati Patil, and even Hannah Abbott in double Herbology (Hannah being Hufflepuff), and they all seemed fairly lovely and excited about the work they were doing. She took little notice of Ron Weasley and Harry Potter for the first few months of school. They were always there in classes, usually laughing or struggling, but they didn’t matter to her. Why should they?

The day before Halloween she was going to her regular Charms class. She had had a rough morning that day because in a History of Magic she had gotten Brian the Boast and James the Jumping mixed up. A large number of the class had laughed and she blushed furiously, embarrassed by her mistake. She seemed to make up for it though, by explaining exactly what spells Emeric the Evil used to defeat Egbert the Egregious in their duel, and most people seemed intimidated, so they backed off. 

After lunch (and extra review of James the Jumping) she headed to Charms, where her interest was piqued when Professor Flitwick said that they were ready to try an actual spell. They had spent the past months learning the theory of Charms, the dangers and rules, and practicing various wand movements, but had not actually cast a spell yet. It was going to use the swish-and-flick motion and would be the Levitation Spell, Wingardium Leviosa. He also said they would be in random partnered pairs, and produced a piece of parchment with the class list. He waved his wand and the names floated off of the paper and into the air. They rearranged themselves into pairs, and Hermione watched as her name flew next to Ron Weasley’s. She suppressed an eye roll and prepared herself for a hard time. 

What she had was just that, a hard time. Ron was hopeless, his wand movements were all wrong, and he couldn’t even pronounce the incantation correctly! She finally decided that she had had enough of his woeful wandwork* and put a stop to it. “It’s levi-O-sa, not levio-SA!” He wasn’t even trying, and she was beyond annoyed. This was shaping up to be the least enjoyable day she had spent at Hogwarts yet; first, she slipped up in History of Magic, and now this? Levitating things wasn’t so hard. When he asked her to make her feather fly (“If you’re so clever”) she smirked and was pleased to do so. Her feather flew up, up, up into the air, but even the look on Flitwick’s face wasn’t enough to ameliorate her bad mood. 

As she walked across the courtyard, disappointed in herself for the mistakes she had made that day, and how she nearly lost her temper, she overheard Ron talking to Harry. “She’s mental, that one. A bloody nightmare. No wonder she hasn’t got any friends.” Suddenly, her eyes filled with tears and she quickened her pace, speeding past them as they rolled down her cheeks. She headed for a place where she could be alone and immediately headed for the girls’ bathroom. 

She stayed there all afternoon. This was exactly what she hoped wouldn’t happen; she was again an outcast and had no friends to comfort her. Once or twice she thought she saw Lavender or Parvati come in, but she couldn’t tell and sat there for hours, crying silently (mostly) into her hands. 

But then, right in the middle of what she was sure would have been a very delicious Halloween feast, something came stomping into the bathroom. She stood up on the toilet and peeked over the edge of the door and her eyes widened in shock. A troll?! A fully grown mountain troll?! She sat back down and tried to be as silent as possible. She wasn’t sure what was about to happen, but nothing good if she made herself known to the creature. 

But then the troll smashed all the stalls in and she screamed, pushed down by broken wood and debris. She ran out and hid under one of the sinks, which was ceramic and metal and therefore would not be as easy for the troll to smash (but would cause much more damage to her if the troll did). And who comes bursting in? Yep, Harry Potter and Ron Weasley, looking relieved and then terrified as they noticed who was in there. She didn’t see much of what happened, as she hid her face in her hands and kept her eyes tightly shut out of fear, but she did see Ron cast Wingardium Leviosa perfectly and felt a hint of pride. He pronounced it correctly, presumably using her demonstration. When the troll was knocked out, she felt so thankful for Harry and Ron that she did something she never thought she would do: she straight up lied to a teacher. She caught a glimpse of the shocked looks on Ron and Harry’s faces as she told McGonagall her fake story and lost 5 points, but she knew they were grateful.

Over the coming months, she, Harry, and Ron became the best of friends. They could be fairly fun to be friends with although she realized their friendship came with the cost of relaxing her attitude about rules. She initially found it anxiety-inducing, but after a while, it was relaxing to not be worried all the time. As she had predicted, Harry and Ron were hopeless when it came to schoolwork. She had to help them with all their assignments, but after a while, became happy to do so and they were ever the more grateful for it. 

When they got into their investigation into Nicholas Flamel, she was astounded that there wasn’t a single book in the library that had his name in it. And then she realized: there wouldn’t be because she had already checked out the only one that did! Hermione, Harry, and Ron dove deep into their research on the Sorcerer’s Stone, and she found them to, while clueless at first, be fairly helpful in some ways. 

She found herself admiring Harry’s bravery and Ron’s sense of humor as they got to be closer friends over the year. Once they went under the trap door, she had to get them out of some sticky spots, but their skills came in handy. Harry was a Quidditch expert, and Ron’s ability to play Wizarding Chess were things that she could never have done herself, and she realized that this adventure would not have been one she could have taken on herself. She needed Harry and Ron.

When Ron sacrificed himself during the chess game, she was simultaneously horrified and amazed at his courage. She doubted she could have ever been that brave, though she was a Gryffindor. And Harry’s overall bravery and dedication she found inspiring and surprising. She didn’t expect it, notwithstanding his defeat of Voldemort as a child. 

She brought Ron back and made sure to visit the two of them every day in the hospital wing, finding herself lonely and sadder with the two of them MIA. She realized that for the first time in her young life, she had true, real friends - and they were perhaps the two unlikeliest students to become as such. 

She would miss Hogwarts, and Harry and Ron, but she couldn’t wait to get back home and tell her parents all about her great adventures. Until next year.


	3. Ron Weasley - Year 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A / N: Welcome to the trio’s 2nd year, the Chamber of Secrets! As a fun fact about myself, my favorite HP book is a tie between Chamber of Secrets and Order of the Phoenix, so I was looking forward to writing this chapter even though there’s not much Romione development. Also, Happee Birthdae Harry! It is the Boy Who Lived’s 40th b-day today, so I celebrated by wearing Ravenclaw colors and yesterday I painted the Hogwarts crest. Welcome to middle age, Chosen One! (originally posted on July 31st on Wattpad again)
> 
> Also, I mentioned in the first A / N that some events will be taken from the books and some will be taken from the movies. Most everything is canon from the books, but in this chapter, Ron and Hermione’s awkward hug-attempt is included (which is only in the movie), and Malfoy’s comment about hoping Hermione would be the muggle-born to die, which I can’t remember if it’s in the books or not. Whoops. 
> 
> Again, see my note on the first chapter about early chapters being a little OOC.
> 
> Disclaimer: I don’t own anything except my Apink albums. Please don’t try to take them. 
> 
> Enjoy!

When Ron Weasley returned home for the summer holidays after his first year at Hogwarts, he was excited to get back to the Burrow. Playing Quidditch, buying Chudley Cannons merchandise, and eating his mom’s delicious food every day. As much as he enjoyed life at the Burrow, however, he quickly found himself longing for Hogwarts. Not the classes, not detentions, not Malfoy and his goons: he missed Harry and Hermione dearly. Sure, growing up with all his brothers and Ginny was nice, and he was never actually alone, but there was something different about having his own friends, who weren’t related to him, and didn’t constantly try to prank him (*cough* Fred *cough* George *cough*).

So as the summer hols dragged on, he became bored and desperately wanted something more fun to do. He wrote to Harry and Hermione often; Hermione’s responses were full of the new and exciting things she was learning (to which Ron often thought, Why is she still doing homework? We’re off from school!), but Harry never seemed to respond. He knew Harry had an owl, Hedwig, so it wasn’t as if he couldn’t respond. Ron couldn’t think of any reason that Harry would suddenly want to abandon their friendship, and so, Ron came to this conclusion: he was being held against his will at the Dursleys’, stripped of his letter-sending rights. Originally a far-fetched idea that Ron brought to his twin elder brothers not seriously, Fred and George realized that that was a very real possibility, based on what Ron had told them of the Dursleys’ behavior. And so, Ron, Fred, and George, being 12-14 year old boys with wild imaginations, came up with the only logical plan: they would have to break him out of there. 

Shockingly, the boys’ rescue mission was deemed a success (by themselves, of course) notwithstanding the very angry Mrs. Weasley that they came home to. “The thing about growing up with Fred and George is that you sort of start thinking anything's possible if you've got enough nerve.” With Harry staying at the Burrow for the rest of the summer, Ron’s loneliness was completely ameliorated... almost. As much as Ron didn’t want to admit it to himself, Hermione completed their friend group. He felt a bit guilty over the rest of the summer as he and Harry did things Ron knew that Hermione would never approve of - he needed her to keep him and Harry in check, annoying as she might be. So as he still was not looking particularly looking forward to going back to Hogwarts, being buried under homework and (probably) getting detentions, the thought of Hermione balanced the scale a bit. It had been really nice to see her in Diagon Alley, so Ron enjoyed the rest of the summer holidays as best he could, and the anxiety of the coming school year was lessened a bit.

However, the year got off to a bit of a bumpy start when Harry and Ron crashed Mr. Weasley’s flying Ford Anglia into the Whomping Willow. Whoops. But in Ron’s defense, it seemed the only sensible idea! In hindsight, Ron would realize that that was far from the truth but what’s done is done. However, one certain person at Hogwarts did not approve of their dramatic entrance: none other than Hermione Granger herself. Hermione had always been a stickler for the rules, so Ron shouldn’t have expected anything more. But it still hurt a bit to be coldly welcomed back to school by her, and not greeted by an excited and pleased Hermione. When Hermione was in a good mood, she was about a billion times more fun to be around, Ron had learned. But after a few days (and learning that they had both received detentions), Hermione seemed to come around and the trio was complete again. 

And so 2nd year began. Things at Hogwarts had not changed much in the students’ absence; Snape was still a git, McGonagall was still scary, and they had another annoying Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher: Gilderoy Lockhart. The Weasley family had to put up with Mrs. Weasley’s incessant fondness of the man, and it led Ron to have a preconceived negative opinion of him (along with the little stunt he pulled in Flourish and Blotts). But Ron was (very) unpleasantly surprised to learn that he was almost as much of a git as Snape was. He only cared about his looks (although Ron did not find him handsome), he added too much drama to class, and even Hermione could do a better job than him at rounding up the pixies! And yet Hermione still had a crush on him, not unlike his mother’s own attraction to the professor. “Why do you have all of Lockhart’s lessons outlined in little hearts?” It seemed that even know-it-all, booksmart Hermione could be dense sometimes. Whenever she made an excuse for him or complimented him, it made Ron feel quite uncomfortable, like there was an icky feeling in his stomach. But oh well, the bar for DADA teachers was low after Quirrell. 

The year continued, and (as per usual), Harry, Ron, and Hermione got up to lots of fUn aNd eXciTing aDvEnTuRes - namely Nearly Headless Nick’s deathday party, which, while nauseating, was an interesting experience (although Ron’s stomach longed for the delicious tastes of the Halloween feast he didn’t attend). And the mystery of the Chamber of Secrets was growing in the school, leading to lots of suspicion of Malfoy (and Harry from others) and a... fascinating Dueling Club experience, to say the least. Ron, Harry, and Hermione’s friendship continued to grow and get stronger and stronger throughout the school year until they were inseparable, and the teachers often just referred to them as “those three.”

But there was one thing that happened during the first few months of school that really ticked off Ron: Malfoy’s insulting of Hermione, using “mudblood” as his keyword. Growing up in the Wizarding World, there were some things that you were just taught never to say, and “mudblood” was VERY high up on that list. It was possibly the foulest insult that there was for a muggleborn, and that Malfoy would have the audacity to say that to Hermione made Ron’s blood boil. He found himself being very protective of Hermione; not in a damsel-in-distress savior kind of way, but in a you-messed-with-my-friends-I’ll-end-you kind of way. Although he often found Hermione to be insufferable and annoying, she was a valuable and loyal friend to Ron, and the thought of using “mudblood” as an insult to Hermione was baffling to him. Hermione was top of the year! She was definitely better at magic than Ron or Draco was, and they were both pureblood. Hermione was living, breathing proof that your background and your heritage was no indicator of magical skill in the slightest. And Hermione’s vast knowledge of magic came in handy when she thought up the trio’s plan to weasel the answer to who Slytherin’s heir was out of Malfoy. 

Polyjuice Potion. Polyjuice Potion?! Ron had not heard of the ~beverage~ before, but after seeing a couple choice illustrations in Moste Potente Potions, Ron knew that he wanted absolutely nothing to do with it. But, as Hermione had pointed out, it was the best plan they had, and the look on Malfoy’s face when they outed him as Slytherin’s heir would make up for any... discomfort that came from the plan. Hermione’s casual dismissal of the many, many school rules that they would be breaking surprised him, though. It seemed that he and Harry had had a bad influence on her. While he was a little concerned, there was a hint of pride mixed in, knowing that he had gotten Hermione Granger to voluntarily break multiple school rules in a plan worthy of Fred and George.

And so, on Christmas Day, the plan was carried out. While not the outcome that they were hoping for, the trio found out more information on the Chamber and also (bonus point) where the Slytherin Common Room was. Always helpful. Ron was thoroughly disappointed to find out that Malfoy was not the heir of Slytherin - in addition to him being a right foul git, he really wanted to get back at Malfoy for insulting Hermione. But it wasn’t him, and they still had no new leads. Also, it took an enormous amount of self restraint for Ron not to punch the bloody daylights out of Malfoy after his comment hoping Hermione would be the muggle-born to die (if there was one). That just seemed too harsh to Ron; Malfoy was an incorrigible jerk, but actually wishing death on another student crossed the line - especially since it was Hermione, one of Ron’s closest friends. 

The mystery of the Chamber continued to unfold with new developments: the diary and Myrtle debacle, Hagrid opening the Chamber of Secrets and being sent to Azkaban, following the spiders (which Ron was NOT pleased at all with and would like a refund) and finding out that Hagrid didn’t actually open the Chamber of Secrets, Dumbledore being removed and Hermione being petrified. That last one really surprised and worried Ron. He had become very dependent on Hermione - not in an annoying, clingy way, just in a she’s-always-there type of way. He never thought about what he would do if Hermione wasn’t there to help them anymore - in multiple ways (schoolwork, keeping them out of trouble, etc.) With Hermione gone, it seemed implausible that Ron and Harry would ever figure out how to solve the mystery of the Chamber. Ron and Harry were still best of friends, but without Hermione, things just seemed... off. It was a strange feeling that Ron did not enjoy. 

And then... well, you know what happens next. Honestly, the whole thing became a blur to Ron: finding out Ginny was in the Chamber, questioning Moaning Myrtle, going into the Chamber and wiping Lockhart’s memory, and then waiting for Harry to return - hopefully with an alive Ginny. That was by far the hardest part for him. The anticipation nearly killed Ron, but he had faith in Harry; he had survived facing Quirrell last year, and if someone could defeat the basilisk, it would be Harry, Ron believed. But he really worried about Ginny. Even though Ginny was only a year younger than him, he had always thought of her as his “baby sister,” and had become extremely protective of her while she was growing up. He couldn’t even think about the possibility that she could be... well, in not great shape, to say the least. So he shifted rock and tried to keep his thoughts optimistic, which, while difficult, had always been what Ron was best at - diffusing the tension in a bad situation, although it was more difficult to convince himself rather than others.

But it luckily all worked out. Harry and Ginny came back, both alive (though only barely), and on the plus side Lockhart became way more of a fun dude - he was quite entertaining as an amnesiac. It shocked Ron to find out that Ginny had been the one behind all the attacks, even if ol’ Voldy had been possessing her, but he couldn’t dwell on that fact since he was just more relieved to see she was alright. Mostly, it was just a blur of relief and exhaustion - he was more than ecstatic to get to bed.

At the end of year feast, Hermione returned at last. The mandrakes were fully grown and so the petrified people could be revived! She showed up just as they were tucking in, and ran to say hi to Harry and Ron. She gave Harry a giant hug (although it seemed to go on forever), and when she turned to Ron to presumably do the same, she seemed hesitant. It seemed as if she was going to hug him but thought better of it at the last moment and they ended up having a sort of awkward handshake sort of thing. But the tension was soon forgotten and just replaced with relief that she and Hagrid were back in action. 

Ah, 2nd year. Had it been worrying? Yes. Life threatening? Yes. Anger inducing? Yes. But Ron also found himself having had fun along the way, being friends with Harry and Hermione. He hoped the next year would be simpler, but hopefully with a touch of mischief as well. Until next year.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A / N: With this chapter, I also found myself falling into one of my many bad habits: writing too much even when I’m not enjoying myself. Even though I was rushing so much with this chapter, I still wrote more than I could have and went into too much detail. Whoops. Hopefully you enjoyed it, tho! Until next time. - Margot


End file.
